Saturday, February 20, 2010

Il- Posto: A price fix blunder (by: Taylor)

I'm going to start this post by saying that on our first visit to Il Posto we had a great time. The location is really small, yet open and comfortable, and the food was excellent. The cured meats and cheeses were excellent, the pastas, made from scratch in-house, were cooked perfectly and all the dishes on the menu were very traditional Italian--meaning simple. light, and very fresh (no noodle dishes doused in a heavy red or white sauce--think Olive Garden . . . not that there's anything wrong with that).

For the reasons listed above, we decided to take Leah's parents to Il Posto for Valentine's Day. However, our second visit to Il Posto did not treat us as nice. The first problem was that when Leah called to make the reservation no one mentioned to her that there would be a mandatory $65 p/p 3-course price fix dinner. Ok, that's fine. But it better be good.

The food:

Some of the food was more successful than others.

The first course was a deliciously smoked, rare Albacore tuna with prosciutto powder and a pommelo gastrique, simply place beneath a grilled radicchio salad with golden beets, a soft cow's milk cheese and celery. It was small but very tasty. A pretty good starter.

The second course was more popular with some of us than others. It consisted of two separate small dishes. The first dish was a raspberry infused risotto with shaved black truffles and a drizzle of very nice olive oil. This was probably the best dish of the night. The raspberry was very light and did not distract from the dish at all. The second part of the dish was a nice, house-made pasta with a very light red sauce and seared bay scallops with sunflower sprouts. I loved it, but everyone else felt it was too fishy tasting and the noodles too al dente, so I had not problem moping up seconds and thirds.

The main course came down to 3 choices:

1. Roasted Squab
2. Braised Veal Cheeks
3. Seared Halibut

I had the squab, which I was not fond of at all. It didn't bother me that it was really gamey--which it was. But rather that it was very chewy and kind of dry. I didn't finish it. Leah's dad, Jim didn't like his squab either. Leah had the braised veal cheeks. She was not much impressed with hers either and felt the quality of the meat was poor. Leah's mom, Kathy, had the halibut and also didn't like hers much. But this was mostly because she prefers her fish to be cooked a little bit more. Leah tried it and thought it was tasty and the portion generous.

Dessert was ok, just a couple of chocolate truffles with chocolate ice cream. It was all tasty and hand-made, but unexciting at best.

In the end this meal just confirmed my theory that a price fix meal only means an over-priced, watered-down version of the meal you are likely to get when you order from the full menu. In the end, what I didn't like about our meal at Il Posto had little to do with the food not being good--although it really WASN'T very good--but had more to do with the fact that after a couple of drinks our meal came to $160 plus tip. $160 for a meal I wouldn't pay $60 for if I had my choice. Everyone who knows me knows that I would give my right arm for a meal regardless of size, style, or price, as long as it's great. I have to say Il Posto inpired nothing in me that night. I might go back, but not because it's at the top of my list, and certainly not for a price fix meal.

Monday, February 8, 2010

My new best friend: Cumin! (2 recipes)


Cumin. Yes, that spice you threw in with your fajitas and tacos. I have been branching out with this guy and have a few new recipes to share. I love both of these recipes because they involve ingredients that you usually have just lying around.

Chicken Shwarma

ingredients:
2 chicken breast
curry powder
cumin
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
salt
pepper
greek yogurt
hummus
cucumber
tomato
red onion

Directions:
Cube two Chicken breasts and place in marinade for 1 hour up to overnight. Place Chicken in pan with a bit of Olive Oil and cook through-- 10 minutes?

While the chicken is cooking, slice up (finely) some cucumber, tomato and red onion (about 1/3 cup total of everything--equal parts of each) and place in greek yogurt (you can usually find the brand FAGE in most grocery stores now). Season with salt and pepper.

Slice up some romaine if you like as well.

When the chicken is done cooking, wipe out the pan and heat up your pitas (about 30 seconds each side).

Then take the pita and slather it with either homemade or store bought hummus. Put some chicken on there, dollops of your greek yogurt sauce, some lettuce and voila!

Marinade:
Extra Virgin Olive Oil (just don't overdue it--just cover the chicken)
1 tbs. Curry powder
1 tsp. Cumin
Salt and pepper to taste

Citrusy Mojo de Ajo Marinade --try with Tilapia!
Marinate for about an hour (not much longer because the acids in the marinade start to cook the fish) and fry up in a pan over medium-high heat, just till the pieces start to flake apart, 2-3 minutes per side depending on the thickness of the fish.

Marinade:
1/2 cup orange juice
2 lemons
1/2 lime
40 grinds of pepper (or 1/8 tsp.)
2 garlic cloves (minced finely)
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/8 tsp cinnamon

Thursday, February 4, 2010

Marco's Coal Fired Pizza

Last night we went to Marco's Pizza on Larimer and about 21st. We have been there several times before but now that it is fresh I will write another review. Marco’s boasts that it is certified as an authentic Neapolitan restaurant by the Verace Pizza Napoletana, and is the only certified restaurant in Colorado, and one of only 40 in the USA. I suppose this is why I think Marco's has the best Italian thin crust pizza in town. They offer two types of pizza--Neopolitan (Italian) style and New York style. The Neopolitan style are thin crust pizzas with some variety of prosciutto, arugula, buffalo mozzarella, olive oil etc. We typically order the Toscano, which comes with the above mentioned toppings and some slices of parm or peccorino and grape tomatoes. Most of the toppings are added once the pizza is taken out of the traditional neopolitan oven. making it very fresh.

Last night we also tried one of the New York style pizzas--the Brooklyn, featuring mushrooms, sausage, pepperoni, red onion, red sauce and fresh mozz. This was my first round with the New York style, as the Napoletana pizzas are so good I haven't strayed in the past. But the New Yorks were just as tasty! The crust on both of these pizzas is truly one of the tricks. It is cooked to perfection and is tasteful in its own right. The other quality part of Marco's is that you can SEE your pizza being cooked, immediately sliced and brought directly to your table. There is no waiting, and your pizza is out of the oven and on your table in one minute.

We also had the house salad which was fresh greens with fresh mozz, grape tomatoes, balsamic and olive oil. This salad is not fussy but it comes with a hefty portion of cheese and tomatoes which makes it worth the money. But while we are on the subject of money . . . this is one of the harder parts to swallow about Marco's. The better pizzas at Marco's are $16-17 and do not come in varying sizes. There is one size and it comfortably feeds only two people. So while the meal is still pretty cheap-- $35 for a salad, a pizza and two beers--it still seems a bit pricey for pizza. However you are paying for the very fresh ingredients which makes it worthwhile.

While you definitely don't go to Marco's for the booze, the wine list is a little boring and the draft beers could use more local brews and variety. But the pizza is great, and because you are further north on Larimer, it is usually easy to find street parking fairly close.

http://www.marcoscoalfiredpizza.com/menu.html